


Mysterious ship in the sand

by masterlokisev159



Category: Marvel (Comics), Marvel 616
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Dog Tags, Hurt Tony Stark, Hurt/Comfort, IN SPACE!, Loneliness, M/M, Near Death Experiences, Protective Steve Rogers, Rescue Missions, Sick Tony Stark, Skrull(s), Temporary Amnesia, Tony Stark Needs a Hug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-26
Updated: 2020-07-26
Packaged: 2021-03-05 05:27:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,165
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25499065
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/masterlokisev159/pseuds/masterlokisev159
Summary: “What’s a Winghead?”Visibly, the man-Steve seemed to relax. His lips curved into a smile and he laughed.“Oh thank god.” Steve said warmly. “I was worried you couldn’t speak.”
Relationships: Steve Rogers/Tony Stark
Comments: 40
Kudos: 336
Collections: 2020 Cap/Iron Man Tiny Reverse Bang





	Mysterious ship in the sand

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [TRB Art 2020 - Crash/Found](https://archiveofourown.org/works/25291300) by [felisnocturna](https://archiveofourown.org/users/felisnocturna/pseuds/felisnocturna). 



> Thank you so much to the wonderful felisnocturna for such wonderful art! And of course, thank you to the amazing mods behind TRB 2020!! 
> 
> Please enjoy!

Grant had never seen such a thing before. This strange, unique ship painted in blue with stars. In the distance, it almost seemed like a fallen star, so bright in contrast to the sandy dunes of this barren place.

It was almost surreal. In the last thirteen moon cycles, Grant had not seen a single thing like it. With that, he lowered his hands from his perch and nodded.

He would go towards it. Perhaps there was a being he could be allies with. Someone to maybe keep him company.

He was lonely. It was simple really, he had never found anyone, not a single communicating life form in this world. He was so lonely and sought desperately for companionship.

Stars did not talk back after all.

He’d been on this planet for as long as he could remember. Or at least he believed so.

His memory was corrupted. Something had happened to him once. Why else had he woken up, alone in a small red bunker shaped like a ship hatch, with food and drinks sealed up in foil tins?

That bunker had quickly become his home. It provided protection from the three blazing suns that rose each day and disappeared each night. 

It also gave him protection from the scanner ships. 

He didn’t know what they were but he knew when they came. Every other sunset, when the blue sun was farthest away, they’d arrive in gleaming red ships, just like his own, only instead of just having a small piece of it, they had the full ordeal. Heavy duty metal ships that flew through the sky on repulser based energy, and had blinding lights that seemed staggering even from a distance.

What they looked like was extraordinary. But what they did was terrifying.

Grant had seen them once find something. Only once, in the distance. Some humanoid creature that had stood on two legs like him, and had seemed to hold his hands up and freeze under the blinking lights.

The creature had burned under the light. All that had been left was dust. He knew because he had left his haven at the next sun, and had gone to the space in the sand to investigate.

It had scared him. And had served as a reminder that he was truly running out of time and options.

Still, today was a hopeful day. Maybe this blue ship, with stars and stripes would have someone. Maybe a kind humanoid he could talk to, who would interact with him and maybe want to learn about him.

(He was afraid. He wanted to find out but what if he was attacked? What if they hurt him and took his supplies? What if they just left him to die?)

But no, he had to carry on. He would venture out with his favorite suit (his only suit), and explore this ship of the stars.

Ensuring his boots and chest plate was secure, he dusted the torn parts of the gold mesh on his arms and legs and stood tall. He had to get ready first.

Ducking under the ledge of his home, he snuck in and quickly grabbed the small sack he had stitched together with a sewing needle and string he had. He’d found it in a tin in the bunker, back when he’d just woken up and found himself covered in cuts and bruises. He’d had to use the needle stitch his own wounds at some points.

(That had hurt so much. He’d cried out so much from the sting of his injuries. He’d so desperately wanted someone with him-)

Sometimes he had surreal moments. Ideas of what to do and an uncanny ability to do it. Like the wound stitching and the bunker repairs and the little work he could do to repair his only item of clothing. This strange plated armor and mesh suit of red and gold that seemed to both support and tire him. 

It was strange. Sometimes he felt he was living a shadow of someone else’s life. Like he was walking in the footsteps of a stranger that had had plans. Hence the amount of resources and a solid base to come home to each night, even if it was tiny.

Still, he was willing to share his small home. If he found someone who wanted to come and stay. He would happily give up his small roll of fabric and lie on the colder ground, if it meant someone could feel comfortable with him.

( _He was so lonely-_ )

Methodically, he gathered his best items and put them in the simple cloth bag. Five tins of water and four tins of protein. It was half of what he had left, but he felt it was worth it. What if there was someone who needed help?

He didn’t think about his dwindling supplies. There wasn’t any point in worrying when there were plenty of other dangers. 

He wouldn’t survive for much longer, he knew. He had lost what little weight he had since he’d woken up, and found his body gasping for breath more with each day. He couldn’t really explore much outside of his bunker anymore and he’d started to notice a strange rash on his left hand and a mild cough in his lungs.

(He was so scared- _was he going to die?_ )

Silently, he swallowed and pulled the draw strings tight on his bag. Then, mute as always, he swung it onto his back and looped his arms through, testing the hold until he was satisfied.

Just as he turned to leave, he mentally cursed and reached for his one precious item. The one thing he’d had looped around his neck that day.

His dog tags.

* * *

The suns were unbearably high. Their rays felt scorching as he traversed the dull landscape. Dust rose and soared lightly in the air.

His lungs hurt. He’d been walking for some time now. At least one sun’s turn. 

The ship was still another turn away. And he was feeling so lightheaded.

 _No,_ he thought desperately, feeling his head spin. He had to make the journey, _he had to_. If he didn’t, he would never have a chance at surviving. Even if there was no one there, maybe the ship would have something.

His body ached though. Blisters covered every part of his feet until they were almost numb.

How long had he been out here? His throat was so dry, he was sure it would hurt to speak. Words seemed so far away, almost as far as the blue ship.

Suddenly he spotted something. Over in the distance, far in the midst. A ship, just beginning to appear over the horizon.

Grant paused and squinted, brushing his long brown hair out of his eyes. The ship was red and getting slightly bigger as it came closer at a rapid speed-

_Oh god!_

They were **those** ships. The ones that scanned and destroyed, leaving nothing but dust in their wake.

Fear seized his body and mind. In a desperate burst of energy, Grant began to run towards the blue ship.

There weren’t many options to hide in. His bunker was too far and the closest thing was the blue ship. He was almost torn in his decision to push further.

_How could they be here now? I tracked every movement and they shouldn't be here so why-_

Grant’s eyes clocked onto the red ship in the distance. It was getting closer and the lights were flashing an aggressive red.

His heart raced. His body wheezed and coughed under the stress and released a cold sweat that did little to help him.

(The creature turned into dust. There was nothing left-)

He ran as fast as he could. Through the sand and the dust and the heat. Until his body was weak and his vision was blurring and his mouth was raw and dry.

The thought of water filled his mind. He almost reached for his bag and took one of the tins out, only he couldn’t. What if someone on the blue ship needed it more?

_What if there’s no one? What if it’s all for nothing?_

Fear was powerful. It pushed him to move faster and go further beyond his limits. His body pounded in time with his blood and his ears roared, screaming at him to stop and rest. 

Suddenly a large screech reached his ears. Though distant, he thought it was coming from in front of him.

Then he saw.

A being emerged from behind the blue ship and began to climb onto the hood. They seemed to stand tall and outstretched and raised their hand to cover their eyes as they looked in his direction-

Grant’s mind flooded with hope. They looked like him! They stood on two legs and had two hands and made the same motions he did!

There was still hope! He could still make it-

Just then, a loud noise blared over the desert, sending Grant tumbling to the ground in pain. The ear-splitting screech didn’t stop, even when his vision doubled from the pain. Tears began to gather in the corners of his eyes as the reality dawned.

He wouldn’t make it. And this error would cost him.

He was going to die.

“TONY!”

Grant’s head shot up the instant he heard the word. It had to have come from the man running towards him now at almost god-like speed, and in the distance, Grant noticed him holding his arm out with a large disk attached to it. It seemed to be brightly colored and detached as he lifted his hand up and swung.

The spinning disk went flying. And it landed seamlessly into the wing of the approaching red ship.

_It’s so close, oh god-_

The ship engines screamed and instantly the whole thing began to descend. Stunned, Grant watched as the cause of his nightmares fell to the ground like a comet, leaving nothing to be saved.

His body throbbed as he knelt in the sand. What did he do now?

“Tony! Oh my god, are you okay!? Let me see you-“ 

Grant flinched as the man spoke directly to him. Somehow, he’d managed to get so close while he’d been down, that Grant was left blinking. How had he moved so quickly?

“Tony? Can you hear me?” The being repeated and to Grant’s shock, knelt down beside him, and quickly began to reach for him.

That startled him. He jumped back from the outstretched hand and shook with fear.

The man was so huge. Big and sturdy and clearly powerful in some way. And he looked so different to anything Grant had seen. He had short blond hair that matched the gold of the first sun and his eyes were a bright blue that matched the second sun. The hand he’d stretched out was covered by a red glove that seemed to be part of the strange blue, red and white armor he wore.

Overall it was unnerving. Perhaps he should’ve expected a strange being. But this one was oddly dressed and looked so different, despite being so similar.

“Hey.” The blond man said softly, pulling his hand back a little. His eyes shone as he looked him over. “I’m not going to hurt you. Do you-do you remember me?”

Trying to calm his body down, he sucked in a deep breath and blew it out. His eyes darted back and forth between the offered hand and the concerned expression on the man’s face.

The strangest thing of all was how Grant could understand him. The words weren’t foreign so they must’ve matched the language in his mind. This man acted like he knew him, but Grant didn’t recognize him at all. Was he an ally or something worse?

Something dimmed in the man’s blue eyes. “You don’t recognize me do you? It’s me, Steve. Winghead. Remember?”

Grant tilted his head and frowned. 

“What’s a Winghead?”

Visibly, the man- _Steve_ seemed to relax. His lips curved into a smile and he laughed.

“Oh thank god.” Steve said warmly. “I was worried you couldn’t speak.”

“I can understand you.” Grant said, only it came out as more of a question. His eyes lingered on the star on Steve’s chest. It looked so...so...

“Anything looking familiar, Shellhead?” Steve said warmly, and Grant jerked his head up in surprise.

“My name’s not...”

“Shellhead?”

“No.”

Steve nodded encouragingly. “What is your name?”

“Grant.”

He got the distinct impression he’d stepped on nails. Steve’s face dropped the moment he said it, and his eyes grew pinched.

“Grant? Where-why would you say that?”

Wordlessly, Grant reached for his neck and plucked at the chain there. With shaky fingers, he reached the tags and pulled them out in offering, unsure as to why he felt so comfortable doing it. Something about this Steve made him relax, almost instinctively.

Steve’s eyes widened when he saw the metal. Then his hands clenched and something burned in his eyes.

“Those aren’t yours.”

“No.” Grant said quickly, shaking his head and feeling his vision swim a little. A jolt of fear raced through him at the thought of someone taking them away from him. “They _are_ mine.”

“Explain.” Steve said, with anger in his eyes and Grant wanted to duck under the force of it.

“I-I woke up with them. I d-don’t have much but this was one of the few things I have. I...it’s all I have.”

He couldn’t decipher the mix of emotions of Steve’s face. Anger, shock, rage and sorrow all appeared in a moment. Then Steve’s face went carefully blank, though his eyes turned to steel.

“Your name is Anthony Edward Stark, or Tony, as most people call you. You are part of a team of humans called the Avengers, and play a part as a superhero called Ironman. A few months ago, you went missing and we suspected Skrulls had managed to kidnap you. Whatever happened after...you found yourself here.”

“I was k-kidnapped?” The idea was horrific. Was that why he had been covered in so many wounds when he’d first woken? Was that why he had incomplete parts of things?

Was that why he couldn’t remember anything before?

“Are you hurt?” Steve said and Grant...Tony looked up to face him. 

Steve looked so angry and yet, there was something wounded in his eyes and suddenly Tony was hit with a strange feeling of knowing what it meant.

“I’m sorry.”

Steve’s face crumpled at that, and his eyes glistened a little. “Don’t say that. It’s not your fault. Just tell me, are you hurt?”

Steve seemed kind at heart. Tony felt he was a good man who wanted to help people. Despite struggling to keep his body from shaking, he felt safe around him. 

Plus Steve knew him. He said he _knew_ him.

“I’m okay. My ears are sore and my head hurts but-“ Steve instantly crawled towards him and cupped his face in his hands carefully, ignoring his surprised gasp. Then, ever so gently, he tilted his face to look at his ears and hair carefully.

“Keep going, I’m just checking.” Steve said, sounding focused as he then brought his hands to Tony’s face and scanned his eyes.

“I’m fine. I had a lot of-a lot of injuries when I first woke up-"

Steve nodded as he listened. "You're definitely concussed. It looks old. How long have you been here?"

"I don't know." Tony said and his breath hitched when Steve accidentally tugged at his hair. "But I was very sick when I woke up."

"My guess would be about just over three weeks. You've been missing for just over a month so that tells me you weren't with the Skrulls for long. What did you do about your injuries?"

"I fixed most of them, I think. It's...”Tony waved a hand around and sighed. "Fuzzy."

“Do you remember anything at all? Does seeing me jog anything?” Steve spoke calmly, now beginning to run his hands over Tony’s arms. His movements were poised and calculated and Tony suddenly had the image of a soldier giving commands. Steve really seemed like the type.

Steve paused and frowned when he reached Tony’s hand.

“How long has this been here?” Steve said quietly, cradling his hand carefully to inspect the rash. Tony didn’t know whether to laugh or cry at that. 

“I’ve been sick for some time. I think I’m dying. I don't know for sure but it appeared a few days ago, a-and-"

Steve’s eyes widened in horror and instantly he reached forward and closed his arms around Tony. For all he had been dizzy and weak-

The warmth and comfort was mesmerizing. He couldn’t remember what it felt like to be held by anyone anymore and yet this felt so familiar and so new all at once- 

“Shhhh, you’re okay. We’ve been searching for some time. As soon as we clocked onto your coordinates, we began the retreat. The others are coming, I’ve already sent a signal.” Steve said and pressed his lips to Tony’s hair. "You're going to be okay, we'll deal with it, whatever it is."

Tony couldn’t handle it. His body shook from the sheer amount of contact. Tears leaked from his eyes as he clutched on with iron grip.

“You’re not dying. I won’t let you. If you’re worried about your hand, don’t be. You’ve always been prone to heat rash and this place has three suns. And this place has been making me cough since I landed so god knows how you’ve felt since you got here, especially with that bad knock. We’ll do a full check on you once we’re with the others and get you completely sorted.”

“How come you know so much about me?” Tony whispered, barely making a sound as he basked in the feeling of the arms around him. He wanted to stay like this forever, feeling safe in this place with a warm heart beating in his ear. The warm heart of a kind man who knew what he needed.

“You see these?” Steve said quietly, reaching between them to clasp Tony’s dog tags.

“They’re mine. But you have them.” He said confidently and Tony glanced at the tags before looking up with apprehension.

Steve didn’t seem surprised. He only smiled and let them drop back around his neck. His eyes were glued to Tony’s though.

“I gave them to you because you’re mine. We’re partners.” He said and cleared his throat. 

_“I’m_ Steven Grant Rogers.”

And all of a sudden, Tony remembered a shield and red gauntlets. And a bright smile that looked exactly like Steve's.

A memory. His first after weeks.

“Take me with you.” Tony begged, sobbing quietly even as he felt Steve lift him up gently. His vision grayed and his mind spun but before he knew it, he was being taken towards the blue ship.

“I’m not leaving you. Never again. I’m taking you home.” 

* * *

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading!! As always, comments are life so please do tell me what you think!
> 
> Please send some love to the wonderful art that was made! Artists are amazing! 
> 
> UPDATE: TMOT should be updated soon
> 
> Come find me on Tumblr or Discord!
> 
> https://www.tumblr.com/blog/masterlokisev159
> 
> Thank you felisnocturna!! :D


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